Dennis fires in stoppage time winner to complete Dons turnaround in Colchester

MK Dons scored twice late on to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat at Colchester United on Saturday, winning 3-2.

With Dons trailing 2-1 heading into the 88th minute, after Joe Taylor’s early brace cancelled out Mo Eisa’s eighth minute opener, Alex Gilbey and Matt Dennis struck to break Colchester’s hearts while seeing Dons complete a remarkable turnaround in a fiery encounter in Essex.

MJ Williams was absent from the side after picking up a knock in the week, meaning Graham Alexander had to make the first change to his league side of the season, calling on Dawson Devoy to take up the central role in midfield. Injured pair Conor Grant and Matt Dennis were named amongst the substitutes.

Keen to bounce back from their midweek defeat to Crawley Town, Dons looked like they had done everything right when they took an early lead. Mo Eisa's fourth goal in four league games came after just eight minutes as he directed Cameron Norman's cross past Owen Goodman.

But the lead would last barely two minutes as Colchester broke down the left flank, and the Dons defence switched off to allow former Luton Town man Joe Taylor to prod in at the back post to level things up.

It was almost a carbon copy from the opposite flank which saw Colchester take the lead three minutes later when, once again, a cross to the far post was prodded in by an unguarded Taylor as Dons went from leading to trailing in five minutes.

Eisa though should have restored parity before the dust had settled on Taylor's second, but saw his close-range effort blocked on the line by Nico Lawrence.

The encounter began to turn fiery after a few off-the-ball scuffles saw Tommy Smith pick up a bandage around his forehead after a coming together with Bradley Ihionvien - the striker could count himself somewhat fortunate to finish the half on the pitch. He appeared to raise his hands to the face of Jack Tucker before leaving a nasty foul on Dawson Devoy to eventually earn his way into the referee's book.

Jonathan Leko cut a frustrated figure up front for Dons as he struggled to get the ball when he wanted it, and after a bit of a shouting match with head coach Alexander, fired narrowly wide just to hammer home his own point.

Lawrence would be Colchester's saviour again on the stroke of half-time when he threw himself in front of yet another Eisa strike when the goal looked set to bulge, his deflection took it over the bar.

The second-half would prove a nervy affair, right until the final kick of the game. A tempers continued to flare, the game degraded into a bitty and scrappy affair. It meant Dons could barely build up any momentum.

Matt Dennis would come on for Leko early on, and Ash Hunter replaced Ethan Robson but neither really made much of an impact until really late in the day - both though would play a key part in turning the game around.

With time running out, Hunter's 88th minute flick forward allowed the industrious Gilbey to burst through and with Goodman closing in, the former Colchester man lifted the ball over the keeper and into the net to equalise.

Colchester's slow pace to the second-half would come to haunt them with 11 minutes put on the board and Dons sensed blood in the water when Jack Tucker's header was palmed onto the bar by Goodman.

Dennis, who only a few weeks ago was told to up his fitness to be in with a chance of game time for Alexander's side, would then prove his worth in the 99th minute, firing into the bottom corner to win it for Dons.

Referee: Carl Brook

Attendance: 3,857 (569)

Colchester United: Goodman, Hall, Dallison (Kazeem 50), Chilvers, Read, Egbo, Tchamadeu, Lawrence, Taylor (Thomas 89), Fevrier, Ihionvien (Bandeira 78)

Subs not used: Smith, Greenidge, Jay, Newby

MK Dons: MacGillivry, Tucker, O'Hora, Smith (Grant 75), Harvie, Norman, Robson (Hunter 63), Gilbey, Devoy, Leko (Dennis 63), Eisa (Illunga 90)

Subs not used: Harness, Holland, Dean

Booked: Ihionvien, Fevrier, Eisa, Chilvers, Tchamadeu, Harvie, Gilbey, Egbo, Grant